Denise La Grassa – Sundown Rising
deelagee Records
9 tracks/29 minutes
Born in Chicago and raised in Wisconsin, Denise La Grassa returned to Chicago to tour with the Second City comedy group before settling down in Chicago’s music scene. As she passed forty years of age, she began her “North of Forty” portion of her career in 2022. Two albums later, she’s plying her trade with vigor and determination.
Denise handles the lead and backing vocals along with organ. John Kregor and Stephen Ryan share guitar duties. Steve C. Mann is on bass and backing vocals, and Mike Gee is on the drum kit. The Nunn Sisters add their vocal choir prowess to “Hope In Love,” and Pierra Lacocgue is on harp on two tracks. Anne Harris adds her fiddle to the next to last track.
She begins the album with the title track. Her husky vocals, a driving beat, vibrant guitar and greasy harp combine to get things moving smartly. Next is “None Of Your Business,” a bouncy cut that she sings with a sassy attitude and lots of emotion. The guitar solo rings solidly in the song, adding some fun. “Hope In Love” is a bit funky and cool. More vibrant guitar, and the backing vocals are well done! La Grassa sings with an attitude as she and the band and added musicians navigate this sweet track.
The harp reprises it’s appearance with the cover “Key To The Highway,” a well-covered classic done with feeling. “Vision of Good Rule Makers” follows and it’s a fast, high-powered performance mixing a Gospel feeling with driving blues. La Grassa give it her all in this one. Things slow down for the somber “The Door,” where Denise sings a song of hope and healing.
“Sweet Talk” is up next and it’s another funky piece with a sweet groove about sweet talking. Another nice guitar solo adds to the cut. La Grassa tells folks off as she tells them to “Quit Your Whining” about their normalization of mass shootings. Life has enough challenges, don’t add to the mess. Anne Harris plays some mean fiddle to make this one special. The album concludes with “Loving For Love’s Sake,” a slow to mid-tempo cut sung with grit and determination. The final guitar solo rings true to take us out.
All in all, these original tunes and one cover are crafted well and allow Denise and the band to show off their talents. It’s a quick and slick ride through these cuts as La Grassa follows up her 2023 album The Flame that charted well as did the single “Better Days” from that album. She tackles life’s many issues with relevant and topical songs that are done well!
